Day 44 - Stranded and the Time Warp

Today, we left our hotel at dawn to make sure we made the only ferry for the day which apparently fills up quickly.  A beautiful 30 km ride to the ferry terminal through beautiful rice fields and canals.  The terminal is in the middle of nowhere on the Courantijn River which runs North to South and is the border between Suriname and Guyana.

As soon as we arrived, we found out the ferry's engine had cracked and there would be no sailing "until further notice" which apparently means 1-7 days.  The boats mechanic had already left with the engine's block to Paramaribo to try to get a new one or to get the old one welded somehow.

After exploring other potential alternatives, like putting the motorcycles in canoes and crossing one by one, and finding out that immigration and customs would not allow it, we decided to go chill back in Nickerie and wait.

First order of business was food.  We went to a really good Chinese restaurant with a big rotating table in the middle and had a great family style feast. Then we headed to a place that apparently had cappuccinos and looked like a fun venue 5km away from town in front of the ocean.

We swam, we had cappuccinos, we chilled, we read, and just plain relaxed. 

It was actually the first time in a long time that I found myself in a time warp ... with nothing to do, no place to be, no schedule, no pressures ... just being alive and being in the sun in a tropical place ... so we relaxed, and talked, and pondered, and philosophized, and met people.  And time slowed down, and every minute seemed to last a long time, and an internal joy and a smile surfaced from somewhere ... and everything was good with the world. 

We went into the pool with our clothes on (it was all we had) just because it was there and we were there and why not.  On the way back, riding standing up with the ocean and river on your left and the canals and the town on your right, with your clothes wet, your helmet open, the breeze in your face, the sun on your body ... the bliss just continued.

At the end of the day, we bought some food, got some blankets, and went to the sea embankment to see the sunset.  A nice end to a nice calm day.

As of this writing, we just heard from the boat captain that the boat is NOT going tomorrow either. Friday would be the earliest. Looks like another time warp is coming tomorrow : )

Our early departure to make sure we made the only Suriname-Guyana ferry of the day

The coffee shop at the ferry border as we found out the ferry's engine blew up

Being very zen about the fact that we are stranded in Suriname with no end in sight

On our way back to Nickerie to wait

A nice view of the canals and rice fields around the border terminal

Back in Nickerei but on the Atlantic Ocean side

Just like in the Netherlands, this view from is from the embankment that holds the ocean from the lower than sea level lowlands on the other side

Fishermen where the Nickerei River and the Atlantic Ocean meet

We found a place that had cappuccinos and a swimming pool to pass the time

A nice sunset over the Atlantic Ocean